TAKE IT AWAY, TOMMY by Georgia Dunn

 

The cats from the comic strip “Breaking Cat News (BCN)” are back in this third collection of comics. This collection appears to be a collection of strips that were published from September 3, 2015 – February 15, 2016. This collection features the regular cast of feline reporters (Elvis, Puck, Lupin, and Tommy), but also introduces several new characters, so of the cat variety, some not of the cat variety. These include Burt, Baba Mouse, Sophie, Tillie, and the Robber Mice. TAKE IT AWAY, TOMMY includes a really good Halloween storyline (that features some ghosts) as well as a Christmas story-line where Puck loses something very special to him.

I’ll admit, I’m not a huge fan of “Breaking Cat News.” It’s a very cat-specific comic and I’m really not the big a fan of cats. However, I do read it in the paper every day. With the expansion of characters and a greater awareness of the larger role, the strip has improved, in my opinion.  I particularly enjoyed the Halloween storyline.

YUGE! 30 YEARS OF DOONESBURY ON TRUMP by G.B. Trudeau

Before Donald Trump became seriously interested in politics and ran for office as a Republican, he was a darling of the left. Garry Trudeau was one of the few from the left-side of the political spectrum who has never really shown much liking for Trump and that can be seen in reading YUGE! a collection of 30 years of “Doonesbury” strips that feature or revolve around Trump.  In reading the strips, one can see that Trudeau never really cared for the man. However, the tone in how Trudeau characterizes Trump changes over the years. The earliest strips in the collection feature Trump more as a rich and sleazy, buffoon. He’s portrayed more as a cartoon character than a real person and it’s obvious that while the writer doesn’t like the man, he just sees him as character that can’t really be taken all that seriously. This portrayal continues through most of this collection.

 

In fact, while the book tries to give the allusion that the writer took Trump seriously early on as a legitimate political threat, the collection illustrates elsewise. The last strip in the book is from April 2016 and even at this point in time, while it appears likely that Trump might have a legitimate chance of winning the Republican nomination, the artist doesn’t take Trump seriously. Instead, he takes the boisterous bluster that Trump speaks and promotes and augments it by several degrees. I think in doing so, Trudeau’s intention was to make Trump appear and even bigger cartoon than he had ever before featured him and that there was no way possible he could ever become President of the United States. Looking back at it now, it kind of illustrates the major error of the left: they never really took Trump seriously. The issue is now reversed as since the day after the election, that side of the political aisle seems to take Trump way to serious about everything, which is probably a mistake, too. Life’s all about balance and there’s very little balance in YUGE!

 

Overall, YUGE! is a somewhat humorous and interesting read because it shows what the political left thought of Trump before he became a serious political contender. Outside of that, fans of “Doonesbury” might enjoy the collection, but because of the limit in scope and topic, perhaps not.

 

LUPIN LEAPS IN by Georgia Dunn

LUPIN LEAPS IN is a compilation of stories of the comic strip “Breaking Cat News.”  The BNN features three cats: Lupin, Elvis, and Puck. They report on news that matters to cats. This particular book focuses on many of the adventures of Lupin. I am not a cat person and initially was not a fan of “Breaking Cat News.” However, while I’m still not a fan, the series has grown on me somewhat and I’m at least amicable to it. The cats in this comic have bigger personalities than Garfield and are more realistic in their behaviors. If you’re a cat lover, you’ll probably enjoy the strip and like LUPIN LEAPS IN.

ZITS: NOT SPARKING JOY by Jerry Scott & Jim Borgman

NOT SPARKING JOY is the latest treasury of “Zits” comic strips. It features the Duncan family:  Dad Walter, Mom Connie, and their crazy teenage son Jeremy. The strips featured in the book appear to have run in newspapers from January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2017. "Zits" is more of a gag-a-day strip, but it does occasional feature a short running story or a weeklong themed strip. I still enjoy reading “Zits,” but I do have to admit that sometimes it occasionally gets stale. The title of the book comes from Marie Kondo and a few strips that revolve around Kondo’s cleaning philosophy.

MOTHER IS COMING by Bill Amend

MOTHER IS COMING is a collection of “Foxtrot” comics. It collects the strips that appeared from January 4, 2015 – August 13, 2017. I’ll admit that since “Foxtrot” has become a Sunday only strip, it’s not quite as entertaining as it once was when it was a daily strip. However, despite appearing only once a week the strip still has moments that capture the charm that made it so special. I’ve always liked “Foxtrot” because it infuses educational areas (such as mathematics and physics) with pop culture references. The title of the book is taken from a strip where Jason and Marcus are sitting on the couch watching “Game of Thrones.” Jason loves the show, but his mother has told him time and time again he is not supposed to watch it. In this strip, he and Marcus have built a giant wall out of white Legos so they can watch the show, only to hear Jason’s mom’s voice behind the wall.

BIG NATE GOES BANANAS! by Lincoln Peirce

The misadventures of middle schooler Nate Wright continue in BIG NATE GOES BANANAS! Some of the storylines in this book include Nate’s baseball team changing its name from the Creampuffs to the Cupcakes, Nate’s sister, Ellen, being asked on a date by Nik Fletcher (the captain of the hockey team), Coach John subbing for Mrs. Godfrey during the last couple weeks of school, Nate being “watched” by his Uncle Ted while Nate’s dad is out of town on business, and Nate spending time on the beach during summer break and running into School Picture Guy. The "Big Nate" comics have gotten better over time and this is a nice collection of them. When purchased new, this book contains a "Big Nate" poster of the book’s cover.